1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to optical disc readers. More specifically, the present invention relates to a low cost open housing compact disc player.
2. Description of the Related Art
The compact disc digital audio player (CD Player) is a ubiquitous tool used in the reproduction of high fidelity audio program content, including commercial entertainment material. The vast majority of popular music is distributed on compact discs (CD's) and many consumers are able to use personal computers to duplicate CD's from their library for personal use. The high volume consumption of CD materials has lead to the high volume production and distribution of CD players. CD player designs are targeted to a wide range of demographics and age groups. Products are available for teens, young children, adults, and even infants and retired persons. As with most consumer electronics products that are produced in high volume, retail price is an important factor in many consumer buying decisions. Accordingly, manufacturers of CD players strive to hold cost to a bare minimum, which translates into competitively priced products in mass distribution, but which still provide reasonable profitability for those in the distribution chain. Of course, product consumer appeal to the features and industrial design of a CD player, as well as price, are also important factors in the consumer buying decisions.
Manufacturers are challenged to hold production costs of CD players to a bare minimum while still providing an attractive product with a design and feature set that appeals to consumers. The essential disc drive and laser assembly used in low cost CD players has been mass produced and cost reduced to an elemental level. The associated electronic circuitry used in CD players has also been minimalized by designers, to the extent that the feature set allows. The internal anatomy of a low cost CD player includes the disc drive motor and laser head module, with an associated dedicated microcontroller, a main controller circuit, which typically includes the audio circuits, a battery and power supply circuit, and the user interface components.
The user interface in prior art CD players typically includes a STOP/OFF key, a PLAY/PAUSE key, a REPEAT key, a SEARCH FORWARD key, a SEARCH BACKWARD key, and perhaps REPEAT, RANDOM PLAY, and/or BASS BOOST keys. Also included are a volume control, a liquid crystal display, a headphone/audio jack, an external power connector, a cover release lever, and a battery compartment lever. To the industrial designer, each of these elements of the user interface represents a cost increase in the CD player. Respecting the housing itself, the prior art CD players typically comprise a large number of individual pieces. These typically include a housing base with separate battery cover, a housing top, a hinged cover, a display lens and display bezel, a keypad frame, a battery holder, and usually a one or more small plastic items that interconnect the other components. In addition, there are usually some graphic elements, logotypes, and self-adhesive stickers that go into the finished product, as well as a user manual.
In addition to the industrial design aspects of a low cost CD player, which are principally focused on cost and consumer appeal, the design must also address safety and performance issue. CD players are prone to reduced performance by the collection of dust and dirt in the mechanical and optical systems. In addition, the laser head in a CD player employs a Class 1 infrared laser, which is an eye-hazard. In the prior art, designers have employed clamshell covers, loading slots, or loading drawers to address these particular issues. Thus it can be understood that there is a need in the art for a cost reduced CD player that has a reduced parts cost, attractive industrial design, and that meets reasonable performance and safety thresholds.